Hi All,
Does anyone else feel like a weight was lifted this week? I spent all day Wednesday watching the US inauguration and I was invested and moved. Watching the Americans get it together created such a shift in my mood. I just felt more hopeful. How long will this glow last? Who knows - hopefully, longer than Clare and Daleās relationship.
Iām currently still job-hunting - itās been a long road to find a production job. Iāll be honest - it can be quite discouraging. Iām trying to stay positive and Iām baking a lot! This week I made a really wonderful maple granola and Iām getting closer to perfecting my scones! Iām thinking I might try to tackle Ina Gartenās crispy chicken and lemon orzo like Jennifer did. If anyone has a good a recipe for something fun to make - let me know :)
Anyways letās get to itā¦
This week on the blog:
This week marks the 3rd anniversary of my blog š
My first ever post was about my love of Big Little Lies since then, people have visited the blog over 8000 times. It feels like a very small number for the internet - but if each of those views were a person in real life, Iād almost have a three-night sold-out run at Massey Hall! So thanks for reading it and being someone who cares. My goal is to hit 10 000 visitors this year - so if you like what youāre reading share it along and tell others about it!
In honour of the blogās 3rd anniversary, Iāve got THREE posts for you.
1 - Lupin is my new go-to recommendation. This is a brilliant French heist TV show. 10/10 would recommend to anyone. Itās so great. I wrote a little bit about why I think itās a brilliant show (without giving away the plot). Iāve also included some similar recommendations if youāve finished Lupin and want something else to watch. Read about it here.
2 -Last week I told you that my colleague QuinnĀ McCutcheon had a sports show premier called Anyoneās Game on CBC Gem. Itās fantastic. I wrote up a little bit about why I loved it, and gave you some other suggestions of sport themed documentary TV shows and movies to watch. Read that here.
3 - Lastly, Iāve got a personal post for you about my feelings around the internet. Iām trying to build my brand and I feel a little insecure about what Iām doing (as in I have no clue what Iām doing). So itās time to try some new things - read this and then please let me know if you have any tips tricks or ideas :)
Things to watch this week:
So this week is very light on new things to watch.
Full Bloom is a floral arrangement reality show. It premiered last night on Crave and Iām excited to watch it today. The trailer looks good. New episodes are apparently coming out each week.
On Netflix, you can check out the 2nd season of Blown Away today. This is a Canadian made show and Iāve worked with a lot of the people who made this show happen. If you missed the first season - itās a show about glass blowing and itās pretty remarkable.
Also on Netflix, White Tiger premiers today. Itās a movie about a driver who āuses his wit and cunning to escape from poverty and become an entrepreneur.ā Iām seeing a lot of people compare this to Slumdog Millionaire. With executive producer Ava DuVernay and starring Priyanka Chopra Jonas - Iād be expecting something good, but reviews are mixed. Check out the trailer here and let me know if you end up watching this. Iām very curious.
If you want to cry, you should watch Penguin Bloom on Wednesday. This another Netflix movie. It stars Naomi Watts, as a mom who has a tragic accident and follows her and her familyās recovery. Watch the trailer here.
Finally - if there is ONE thing Iām actually looking forward to watching - itās the major dump of Australian content on CBC Gem this week to mark Australia Day (January 26). There are countless options - lots of docs, comedies, dramas, reality shows, and kids programming. I want to watch Restoration Australia, 600 Bottles of Wine, and The Australian Dream. Gem has been really stepping up their game as of late so I really recommend heading over to find something to watch in general. Plus their Twitter account is amazing and so at the least give them a follow.
Other things to check out:
For all my High School Musical fans out there - get ready to feel old. High School Musical premiered 15 years ago this week. I remember watching it vividly - I can tell you where I was and who I was with (mostly because it was the day I fell in love with Zac Efron). The point is - to mark this momentous occasion, Variety looked into the making of this Billion-Dollar Franchise. Even if you are not into HSM, it goes more into the business of making it. Unfortunately, Zac Efron declined to comment on this but Iām holding out hope for his thoughts on the 20th anniversary. Read it here.
In Bachelor Nation news - Dale and Clare broke up. Iām not shocked at all. It's almost more shocking how long it lasted. Itās stupid - but Iām into this drama.
One of my favourite YouTubers, Max Fosh had a clever video this week gaming the Amazon system to become a #1 bestseller. For all of you writing books during this lockdown - it might give you ideas :)
For all you Bridgerton fans - season two has been announced! Check out this announcement from Shondaland/Lady Whistledown.
This time last year I was in Bancroft filming the 3rd episode of All Round Champion. Just a reminder you can watch the episodes as they come out on the TVO kids youtube page. So far weāve done Freestyle skiing, figuring skating, and dog mushing - next week is Cross Country Skiing!
Our featured athlete for episode 2 of ARC was Jamie SalƩ. One of my must watch videos of the week is this AMAZING short doc about the SalƩ/Pelletier skating scandal in 2002. It is only eight minutes long but well worth your time watching.
For those of you who are curious about what youāll be watching in 2021+beyond, one of my favourite industry traditions is reading the Pilot Guide from The Hollywood Reporter. For the uninitiated - this is a list of all the shows that are in contention to be a part of the 2021/22 network season. There are over 60 shows - most will not see the light of day, but itās fun to see what people are buying or interested in buying. I have a lot of fun trying to guess which shows will end up getting full season runs. Iād love to know which shows interest you.
As this was the last week of the cheeto - there were quite a few inspired send-offs from the comedians who kept us all sane the last four years. From broadway inspired videos like this one from Randy Rainbow and this one from James Corden, to more serious wrap-ups like this one from Seth Meyers, and this wild Melania one from Stephen Colbert. I donāt want to say Iāll miss these, but I kind of will. I donāt know if weāll be able to mock Biden (or any other President) in the same way again.
Lastly - if you are looking for some theatre in your life, you have to check out the Toronto Fringeās Community Booster event thatās happening this weekend. It started yesterday and has lots of great programming on till Sunday. Learn more here.
Have a great weekend,
-Paula